Tag: #Microsoft

#Microsoft launch a powerful #SurfacePro4 with new Surface Pen & Type Cover by @Tiwaash #Windows10Devices

Last year Microsoft had shown the new way of how a tablet can replace your laptop with the formidable Surface Pro 3. The transformation of tablet into a full fledged was aided with the sleek Type Cover and the Pen. The Surface Pro 3 has been a top choice for consumers ever since it was launched. Improvising on the successful Surface Pro 3, Microsoft today announced the Surface Pro 4 which had taken the game to a level of its own.

Surface Pro 4 has evolved from the Surface Pro 3 and following the same design ques, the former resembles the latter in many ways. Microsoft refined its design from last year to create a hybrid tablet that’s slightly thinner and more powerful.It also managed to include a slightly larger 12.3-inch screen in the Surface Pro 4 (0.3 inch bigger than the SP3) without making the case bigger.

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There’s a fingerprint sensor on the keyboard and Cortana integration inside the new tablet. Microsoft has done a lot of upgrades to its keyboard covers this year. There’s an all-new Surface Pen as well, which also has an eraser on the end of it. The new pen has 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity and attaches magnetically to the side of the Surface Pro 4 when not in use. It comes in a variety of colors and even has Cortana integration: you can activate Microsoft’s voice assistant by holding the button on the Surface Pen.

Microsoft claims Surface Pro 4 to be 50 percent faster, against Apple’s MacBook Air, however, it also has high-end specs that wouldn’t be out of place on an ultrabook laptop. Storage goes all the way up to 1TB and you can get 16GB of memory to go with that Intel 6th-gen processor.

The Surface Pro 4 is available to preorder now, starting at $899 or £749. It will be available on October 26th.

Tech Specs of Surface Pro 4:

    • Windows 10 Pro OS
    • 12.3” PixelTouch display with a Resolution of 2736 x 1824 (267 PPI)
    • 10 point multi-touch
    • New gen Surface Pen
    • 6th Gen Intel Core M3/i5/i7 processor with Intel graphics
    • 4/8/16 GB RAM
    • 128/256/512 GB SSD Storage
    • Full-size USB 3.0 port
    • microSD™ card reader
    • Headset jack
    • Mini DisplayPort
    • Cover port
    • SurfaceConnect™
    • 5.0 MP front-facing HD camera
    • 8.0 MP rear-facing autofocus camera, with 1080p HD video recording
    • Stereo microphones
    • Stereo speakers with Dolby® audio
    • Battery- Up to 9 hrs of video playback
    • Magnesium casing

I’m really excited about this handsomely crafted Surface Pro 4 and Microsoft already has a winner under its products.

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Microsoft sets the date for new devices. October 6th. #Microsoft

All eyes will be on Microsoft this October as they have begun sending out press invites,new hardware is what to expect such as the Surface 4 and some new handsets which are long overdue and hopefully the handsets will be available really soon and not follow typical trends being US bound or lottery rollouts.They need to get these devices into the hands quick as its been a long time now since the last flagship and many have shifted to other platforms due to the inconsistency and outdated specs and again apps,this is an argument for another day and the hope now is universal apps will save the day,with market share slipping and not many new OEMs jumping on Windows they face an uphill battle with Android and iOS..

The event will take place in New York and expected devices such as the 950/950 XL  and the new Microsoft Band will be unveiled at the bash,recently we have seen leaked renders of the handsets which will be interesting to see how close they par up but something tells me they won’t. They will be different sizes to begin with.

Microsoft will also be live streaming the event too which is good news,So the date has been set and the world will be watching….

Watch it live

#Google #Microsoft #Mozilla & #Netflix are just some members of “AllianceForOpenMedia” By @VicenteA_George #Media #Codecs

We live in an age when almost everything is located on Internet and every day more and more of our Media are at some point, unplayable due to some “Format Restriction” of any kind.

Well, soon that’s about to end thanks to the recently announced Alliance for Open Media.

Starting on September 1st Seven of the most greatest Media creator have created this “Justice League” of Formats and Codecs for video and media in general.

“The Open and royalty-free format for next-generation
ultra high definition media”

Amazon, Cisco, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Mozilla and Netflix have made partnership into this Open-Source Project to reach to ultimate goal of “develop next-generation media formats, codecs and technologies in the public interest.”

Something that really complicate media consumption in the format of the video we’re trying to see.

For example:

For using MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 formats, a royalty must be paid to MPEG LA.

Mozilla has Daala

Google is has on VP9 and 10

Etc.

That’s why should not come as surprise that this guys wanna save some money and as result we have a more persistent and pleasant usability of video formats.

What they want to do as main task is to create media:

Interoperable and open.

Optimized for the web.

Scalable to any modern device at any bandwidth.

Designed with a low computational footprint and optimized for hardware.

Capable of consistent, highest-quality, real-time video delivery.

Flexible for both commercial and non-commercial content, including user-generated content.

(Something worth the mention is Apple absence in the group, which is easily explainable.

Apple owns QuickTime and they need to pay anyone to implement videos on  iTunes or Apple TV.)

The license name will be Apache 2.0 and will work under the W3C patent rules.

If you want to know more about the project you can go HERE or follow them at @a4omedia

What do you think of this? Let us know in the comments or Tweet us using #techbuzzireland

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Microsoft teases with prototype called #DisplayCover to enhance productivity by @Tiwaash #MicrosoftAppliedSciences

Everyone loves a smart, stylish, compact and powerful device which surely adds to the productivity manifolds and this is where tablets came in and then there came powerful tablets to ease the work and this resulted in Surface Pro 3 a powerhouse. Well you might be wondering why am I talking about this, it’s because of the latest research from the folks at Microsoft Applied Sciences.

Looking to further bridge the gap between slate and laptop, Microsoft Applied Sciences built a prototype device it calls the DisplayCover: a keyboard cover that houses an e-ink touchscreen display. The 1,280 x 305 resolution panel not only provides access to app shortcuts, but it can also handle touch gestures for navigation and accept stylus input. The e-ink display material was selected because it wouldn’t put too much added strain on battery life like a full-color touch panel would. It’s interesting to take a look at what companies are doing to make efficient use of small screen sizes for maximizing productivity.

The stylus feature seems to make things like signing documents and scribbling notes a breeze, based on the demo video. In the case of an app like Photoshop where you need constant access to tool palettes, those items can be parked at the top of the keyboard so they don’t take up valuable space on the tablet’s display.

Really looking forward to this awesome feature rich display which is very handy. Let us know what you feel about this in the comments below.

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#Windows10 Insider Program scores the best ever build yet for Fast Ring by @Tiwaash #Microsoft

Microsoft is on a roll with the development and refinement of the upcoming Windows 10 OS. On Tuesday Microsoft had announced the Build 10159, for the users who have signed up for the Insider Program, with the very futuristic logo and wallpaper, today its a surprise for the fast ring (ones who have opted to get the unpolished and raw OS even before it is made available to everyone).

The head of OD development for Microsoft, Gabriel Aul tweeted

In the official blog Gabriel Aul said that since it’s going to be an extended weekend in the USA he was excited to unveil the Build 10162 to the fast ring and then to slow ring if there aren’t any issues detected.

Gab Aul added

Build 10162 is another great one. In fact, our testing and internal telemetry metrics show it has better reliability, performance, battery life, and compatibility than any Windows 10 Insider Preview build so far.

It’s good to see that Windows10 is getting in shape in good time and we are hopeful that the final OS should be ready soon and are very excited.

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Microsoft to withdraw modern Skype starting July 7 by @Tiwaash #Microsoft #Skype #Windows

Microsoft has been busy lately unifying it’s core apps to gel with the soon to be available Windows 10, that’s why today it announced to withdraw support from the modern Skype simplifying your PC experience down to one app that you can use either with your mouse and keyboard or with touch. Starting on July 7, Skype is updating PC users of the Windows modern application to the Windows desktop application, and retiring the modern application.

With the upcoming release of Windows 10 for PCs, it makes sense to use the Skype application optimized for mouse and keyboards use, capable of doing touch as well rather than 2 separate applications performing the same function. This is result of the feedback taken by the Skype team through its users.

Anyone trying to access the modern application on PCs starting from July 7 forward will be automatically directed to download the desktop application. If you already have Skype for Windows desktop you don’t need to do anything. Also, if you’re on a Windows RT tablet device, there is no change for you.

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Windows 10: made to take care of all your Devices by @Tiwaash #Microsoft #Windows10

Microsoft’s recent announcements illustrate how serious the company is about ensuring your Windows 10 PC will be amazing at working with all your devices. We think no other PC operating system can do all this:

  • The Phone Companion app on Windows 10 PCs will help you setup a Windows phone, Android Phone, or iPhone to ensure your key Windows experiences—your photos, your music, your docs– move effortlessly wherever you do.
  • The updated Xbox Music app on Android and iPhone will enable free streaming playback of your music files and playlists from OneDrive, so all your music is available wherever you are.
  • A companion Cortana app for Android and iPhone connects the world’s only personal digital assistant from your PC to your phone… right there to buzz you for reminders, answer your questions, and be your personal helper not just on your PC but on your phone, too.

“At Microsoft, we want everyone to love not just their Windows 10 PC, but all the devices they own, working with their Windows 10 PC” reads the Windows Blog.

Learn more about these features here.

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Have multiple Desktops in one PC with Virtual Desktops in #Windows10 by @Tiwaash #Microsoft

How cool it would be if we had the same system at work as well as at home without having to switch the user all the time? I know it would make life much much easier organising stuffs separately for all kinds of personalities I possess. Like a complete desktop for travel related stuffs, then other for blogging, another one for office, one more for photography…and so on… Well folks the good guys developing the Windows10 at Microsoft seem to have heard this need and now Virtual Desktops come in built with Windows10. Read on to know more about Virtual Desktops on Windows 10.

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The team at Microsoft had a few goals while developing the Virtual Desktop. Here are some high-level goals which they identified:

  • Give you more desktop space to group related windows
  • Help you quickly locate and switch to any window or group of windows
  • Let you easily re-organize your groups and move windows as tasks evolve
  • Keep you in control of the degree of separation between your grouped windows
Add as many desktops as you need

Design
To add a new desktop simply click the task view button on your taskbar and click the “new desktop” button. Just like how you can run as many application windows as you like, there’s also no limit to how many desktops you can create.

Task view is also where you can go to switch between desktops. The top part of this view shows previews of the windows you have open, just like Alt+Tab. However, task view also is able to filter this list when you create virtual desktops, so only the relevant windows appear. Under that you will find the list of desktops you have open. The labels along with accurate previews make it easy to find what you want to switch to. However, what if you’re trying to find that music player and you forgot which desktop you had it on? With hover preview it really is a breeze. Just hover over each desktop preview and Windows will let you peek into any desktop to see what windows are open there. That’s right, no need to switch to one desktop at a time to search for the window you’re looking for! You can even click on the app preview from task view to bring that window straight to the top.

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You can now drag any window into the desktop you want to move it to right from task view. You can even drag a thumbnail to the “new desktop” button to create and move it to a new desktop in one step.

For the keyboard inclined users, you’ll appreciate some of these shortcut combos to accelerate your virtual desktop experience.

WIN + CTRL + LEFT/RIGHT: Switch to previous or next desktop
WIN + CTRL + D: Create a new desktop
WIN + CTRL + F4: Close the current desktop
WIN + TAB: Launch task view

To know more about Virtual Desktops or give suggestions to improve go here.

Let us know your experience with the Virtual Desktops in the comments below or tweet us using #TechBuzzIreland.

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Good news app developers, Microsoft announces Azure App Service by @Tiwaash #Microsoft #Azure

Microsoft announced Azure App Service, a unique new service which helps developers deliver cross-platform, cloud-connected apps faster than ever before. App Service is a one-of-a-kind cloud service which allows developers to easily build employee, partner and customer-facing apps for any platform or device.

App Service integrates the Microsoft Azure Websites, Mobile Services and Biztalk Services into a single service with a common app hosting, runtime and extensibility model, enabling simplified integration with popular consumer and commercial services and on-premises systems, all for one low price. Azure App Service provides developers with everything they need to build:

  • Web Apps
  • Mobile Apps
  • Logic Apps
  • API Apps

App Service builds on Microsoft Azure’s open, easy to use services, to let developers build apps for any device, and any platform, in a simple, integrated developer experience using their language and tools of choice.

To get a free trial of App Service sign up here.

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